The Herds Article
The climate crisis. An extremely prevalent problem within the modern world. With a masterclass in craftsmanship, The Herds appeared in Heywood on the 4th of July while embodying the will to fight and prevent this global climate crisis. From Africa to Europe, they have travelled over 20,000km which is truly something to be marvelled.
The first thing to note here is the number of people that packed the streets of Heywood and paths of Queens Park in order to see these large-scale puppets in action. Despite the less than desirable weather conditions presented to us that day, this did not deter this large crowd from seeing the show. It is possible for one to have expected this due to The Herds’ high reputation across Europe but it is still great to see such a large community come together to appreciate such a great and ambitious project. Another factor that really brought the experience together is the music provided by Global Grooves. With aid from drums, they seemed to transform the quiet area of Queens Park into a jungle-like space which was befitting of the giraffes, leopards, monkeys and many other mammals that traversed the area. To add to the experience, local volunteers brought life to the animals through movement while using the space to add character to these cardboard-manufactured beasts of the jungle.
After The Herds had reached the large lake within Queens Park and the performance had come to an end, the evening was topped off with a performance from 9-piece band Riot Jazz. Along with some great music, a great performance was also provided from them as they seemed to be enjoying themselves a great deal. From this, their infectious energy seemed to have reached the audience as the atmosphere was something to behold while people spent their Friday night taking in the brass vibes whilst I tucked myself away under a nearby tree to protect my self from the ongoing British-typical weather.
Overall, the Herds was a great community event in which the people of Rochdale got to gather in large numbers like the old times. While Queens Park will most likely never see such a gathering in the foreseeable future again, it was nice to see that perhaps the world is not as doom and gloom as a lot of people make it out to be.
